About Solarize Brunswick

The purpose of the Solarize Brunswick program is to help people get the best deal possible on solar energy systems through group purchasing. The more people who sign up for a solar energy project before January 31, 2016, the lower the cost of the project for everyone who participates. This model has proven successful in many other towns in northern New England where there is a strong level of local community involvement and people are willing to spread he word about the opportunity. Studies on solar adoption have proven time and again that the number one predictor f where a future solar energy system will occur is the proximity of an existing system–good neighbors helping other neighbors get in on the powerful benefits of renewable energy.

Selection of winning bidder for Solarize Brunswick has followed a deliberative process set in motion by the The Town’s release of a Request for Proposal (RFP) in July 2015. In response to the RFP, the Town received four qualifying bids from area installers. At the same time, the Town appointed a Selection Committee to evaluate bids. Bids were evaluated based on four criteria highlighted in the RFP, and weighed in roughly equal measure: quality of the equipment and installation; support of the customer provided by the bidder before, during and following installation; value of the proposed bid to the customer, in particular the value of the tiered pricing mechanism; and commitment to outreach and promotional activities.

All of the received bids were strong in one or more criteria. Multiple bids were strong across the board. But, only ReVision offered a proposal that was price-competitive, strong on features, and backed by a reputation for quality and service in the Brunswick area stretching back over a decade. Other factors were taken into account as well. The Town has been gathering names of interested residents and businesses, including tax exempt organizations, and has collected over 240 so far. The size of ReVision’s operations — distributed across northern New England, with 689 systems installation installed in 2014 alone, 486 of which taking place in Maine and more than 50 of those in Brunswick — inspire confidence that it can serve a successful Solarize Brunswick program in the planned timeframe

In addition, ReVision’s ability to arrange Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) makes it particularly attractive for some of the large tax exempt organizations that have expressed interest in Solarize. Finally, ReVision’s commitment to Community Solar Farms (CSFs) make it attractive in Brunswick, where there has been strong interest from consumers for a CSF option.

The Selection Committee considered all of the bids carefully, and considered more than one bid in its final round of deliberations. However, after rounds of Q&A and following interviews, it chose ReVision Energy unanimously and without qualification as the Town’s partner installer.

The Town eagerly looks forward to working with ReVision to make Solarize Brunswick a success!

About ReVision Energy

ReVision Energy is full service solar energy design and installation company specializing in solar hot water and solar electric systems. To further our mission to reduce fossil fuel consumption and carbon emissions, we have added the design and installation of high efficiency heat pump water heaters and air source heat pumps. We also install electric vehicle charging stations.

To ensure maximum performance and longevity in a relatively harsh northern climate, our systems are designed by engineers (Brown, Dartmouth, MIT, UMaine, UNH) and installed by our in-house team of licensed, certified solar professionals. We employ 3 Master Plumbers, 4 Master Electricians, and 10 NABCEP certified professionals and we do not hire subcontractors. We have performed all of our own installations since inception because we believe customers are better served by a single solar company handling projects from start to finish—that way if anything goes wrong we know we are responsible and can fix it.

Since 2003 we have grown from two guys in a garage to more than 100 employees today. We are proud to be one of just three B Corps in Maine!

Company History

2003 – Bill Behrens and Patrick Coon founded Energyworks LLC in Liberty, Maine to provide professional solar installations by mechanical contractors, to be able to offer the service of solar energy to the mainstream market.

2006 – Fortunat Mueller and Phil Coupe launch a branch of Energyworks LLC in Portland to serve southern Maine from Bath to Kittery; this branch is run independently of the Liberty branch.

2008 – The two branches merge to form ReVision Energy, LLC. The name of the company changes due a legal dispute with another company claiming the rights to the name Energyworks.

2010 – ReVision Energy reaches over 2,500 systems installed in Maine and New Hampshire and opens a new branch located in Exeter, New Hampshire.

2011 – ReVision Energy begins offering air source heat pump installations as part of its mission to help people move away from fossil fuels. This energy efficient technology combined with solar panels makes for incredibly efficient systems and provides for long term heating solutions. Also in 2011, ReVision Energy installs its first system funded through the Power Purchase Agreement financial model designed to make solar accessible to municipalities, schools and non-profits.

2013 – ReVision Energy celebrates 10 years in business with over 60 full time dedicated staff members working to continue to reduce carbon emissions and provide professionally engineered long term energy solutions.

2014 – ReVision Energy builds Maine’s first Community Owned Solar Farm (CSF) in South Paris, with support of a grant from Efficiency Maine.

2015 – ReVision Energy opens an office in Concord, NH and grows to over 100 employees companywide while remaining true to its original mission.